Surely now is the time to Rise?
by Foreshadow-of-Dusk
Summary: Undelivered letters written by Merlin over the ages calling for Arthur's return to help him and put a stop to the events Merlin is forced to live through - Rated T due to themes and possibly more graphic letters
1. 30th June 1916

30th June 1916

Dear King Prat,

You'll be pleased to hear my uniform is still muddy and despite regulations I've managed to make myself another neckerchief (although it is the same green as the uniform…). I can imagine if you were here you'd have won the war by now, it's already been going 2 years and they say tomorrow's battle is the 'last push' that will take us all the way to Berlin!

Despite what you say I'm not that much of an idiot, I know it's not going to work; it hasn't all the other times, why now? You'll laugh when you hear that we have to walk in neat rows towards the enemy. Remember when you used to charge into battle on your horse? And I'd be right beside you? We always won when it was us together, Arthur and Merlin against the world.

If there was ever a time for you rise and become King again, I can't think of a better time. I'm scared Arthur, I may be immortal but it still hurts to get shot and it's still scary to walk out into no-man's land. I can imagine you right here telling me to 'stop being such a _girl_' and it made me laugh (Prat!) but I need you, we need you, it's been so many years and you were supposed to rise again when needed, isn't this the time?! Thousands are dying Arthur! Some of them are only children who shouldn't be here in the first place! Why haven't you come back and put a stop to this? You always hated unnecessary slaughter and carnage, so why let it happen now?

I hope when you go rise again someday you'll read over these letters and laugh, calling me a coward, fool, dollophead...

But for now I need to go and sleep as we're going over-the-top tomorrow, so wake up soon Arthur and please make it all stop,

Forever your servant,

Merlin

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Well, this is my first fic ever, what do you all think? OOC? Nicely written? Poorly written? Should I write more? Thank you for reading anyway ^^


	2. 1208

1208

Arthur,

You need to come back now. They're going to burn me. They're going to burn me at the stake for witchcraft. Along with all the Cather's I've been staying with.

The new Pope Innocent III has declared our belief's to be 'demon worshipping' and 'evil' and has begun hunting us. Come on you Prat! You were supposed to unite the lands and bring magic back! Now we are persecuted again, many are fleeing abroad as the Pope has set up an Inquisition that hunts us like animals.

You were supposed to make this stop Dollophead, I was supposed to be free, I wasn't supposed to live in fear anymore…

I considered letting them burn me you know, denying my magic and pretending I was normal so they may start disbelieving in witchcraft (yes I _know_ that was a stupid plan!) but I had you whispering in my ear 'Stop being _such_ an _idiot_ _Mer_lin' and so I broke us all out. The Cather's have all left for the continent hoping for a better life, but I must stay and await your return, as I always have and will do so until the day I die.

But you need to come back and put a stop to this! People are accusing random people of witchcraft just to get even on a grudge or settle old scores, innocent people are being burned!

I know I'm an idiot, clotpole, cabbagehead, so you have to come back now Arthur, you need to save us all like you always did. Afterwards we'll hold a feast in your honour (for all your complaints I know you enjoyed them, I had to make a new hole in your belt remember?) and you'll tell me I was such a _girl_ for panicking and laugh at me and then I'll tell you you're fat…

So please come back Arthur, I'm tired of running and having everyone run from me,

Merlin


	3. 2nd July 1916

Warning: Minor Graphic Content

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2nd July 1916

Sire,

I can't take it anymore. Enough. I want out, I want it all to stop. There's so many gone Arthur, the battalion had 450 people when we set out, do you know how many came back?

26

Only 26 are left.

And oh God the _noise_. We're sitting back in our trenches and people are still dragging themselves back, the _noise_ Arthur. It's a continuous moan punctuated with death wails as people give up and sink under. It sounds as if the very earth is moaning. All that can be seen on the horizon are misshapen lumps staggering back to their lines: limping, crawling, keening, dying. It was like watching a resurrection, each twisted brother prying the other up from the filth.

Oh the stench Arthur! It's all death all around and it's all too much. Too much.

Why haven't you come back? You were supposed to come back! You were supposed to put a stop to this, why haven't you come? They're not going to stop you know, we have to carry on _walking_ towards the other side, a side full of people like us: cold, scared and half-crazed from perpetual panic.

I hate this you Prat! I hate cowering in the mud with my feet rotting beneath me, sitting with people I've just met that'll only be replaced by someone new the next day. Everyone keeps dying so quickly.

But I stay.

I always stay.

Please come soon you Clotpole. I'm tired defending your kingdom for you for so long. It's been so many years I miss how simple things were in Camelot with Knights' codes and magic.

So please come back, I'll be your idiot manservant again and you can be a prattish King and you can stop all this needless bloodshed, right you Cabbage-head? You'll come for me won't you? I don't care if you still hate me for having magic, if you refuse to speak to me just please, _please_, rise again and take your place as Albion's ruler.

Please come back Arthur, I hate it here.

Merlin

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Hello my lovley's! Thank you so much to those that reviewed, I was going to say this in the last chapter but I got a bit over-excited and just published it... hehe, sorry guys ^^

So thank you to cadfael256 and Bailieboro, your reviews made me so happy! :D

But... can I have more reviews, please? They make me happy...


	4. 1st November 1611

1st November 1611

Dear Clotpole,

You'll never guess what I've been up to!

I've just been performing for the King, I'm one Shakespeare's acting troupe now. The play was great (no I wasn't playing the fool, Fool!) I was Prospero.

Ironic I know.

I have to pretend not to have magic, so I can act the part… of someone with magic.

I can hear you laughing now as if you were next to me. The Tempest really is a great play Arthur but some parts bring back painful memories.

Do you remember that time for your birthday when you had acrobats and jugglers and jesters to entertain you? You pretended not to like it but I know you enjoyed all the attention (Oh don't think I never noticed you Prat) so I acted my best as if you were watching. King James has brown hair but if the light hit it right I could pretend it was blond see? And his silvery blue doublet I could pretend was your armour and it was almost like I was back playing the fool for Queen Annis.

Do you remember that Arthur?

I miss those days. I miss laughing by your side and spilling wine on you (it's your fault for embarrassing me!)

I know there's no great crisis.

I know there's peace right now.

I know you're going to rise when the country is in need of you.

But don't you see? It's been so long now, I'm so tired Arthur, I've lived through so much. I'm so lonely, there's no one left for me. There is no Gaius to scold me for staying up too late; no Gwen give me flowers and ask how I am; no knights joke with and no You to look after me.

Can't you just rise again for me? I don't want to be alone anymore, I want friends who can know me and laugh with me and stay with me.

I want to go home Dollophead! I want to go back to Camelot! All this, the acting and fake laughing is only something to get me through the day, to postpone the nights which are full of dreams of by-gone days. I dream of returning to those days where knights fought for honour and a just King sat on the throne defending his people instead of letting his kingdom suffer to appease another.

I'm tired of this life Arthur, if you will not rise to meet me, surely you'll allow me to fall to you?

Merlin

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Thoughts? Comments? After the last letter I figured something less gory and more... downcast?

And thank you so much everyone that's reviewed this - reviews always make me so happy! I'd name you all but my e-mail is being weird again (Grrr msn) so you'll have to wait for the next chapter ^^

Also sorry it took a week to do this, I've been striggling through coursework. Any English people out there doing A2 history coursework? It's a killer...

Lastly, thanks for reading, hope you enjoyed it and please review :)


	5. 16th July 1588

16th July 1588

Dear Dollophead,

Negotiations between Elizabeth I and Philip II of Spain (her one-time brother in-law!) have failed. Spain is the sent an army to overthrown us.

You need to come back.

18,000 soldiers have been gathered in Spain and they are to meet up with the rest of the troops from the Netherlands where there are 30,000 waiting. Added to that are 8,000 sailors that will take them across the channel to us.

Arthur, they are going to overrun us.

Once they have, they will bring their barbaric Inquisition with them.

Then people will be burning in the streets again.

You must _hurry up_! Stop lazing around in the after-life and _help me_! I can't keep fighting all your battles for you, you have to come back and take control because Gods help me you Prat, I don't see how we're going to pull through this.

I don't care if you have to throw things at my head, call me a girl or hunt innocent bunnies; you have to rise now. Because honestly? I don't know what to do. We are out-manned and out-gunned.

Did you know they have 50% more fire-power than us? That we cannot possible hope to muster an army anywhere near the size of theirs?

Once they take over people like me will be top of their burning list, at the moment Elizabeth only asks for outward conformity. If the Inquisition come they will look up my records and find out I'm immortal and they'll burn me at the stake for witchcraft.

Is that what you want?

So please come on, we need you!

_I need you._

Please come back, I can't do this on my own. It's too much Arthur, too much.

Merlin

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Hum... not sure how I feel about this chapter, to be honest I was in a bit of a bad mood when I wrote it - so less agst and more anger this time, ahhh well... Hope you like it all the same.

And thank you everyone that's reviewed! Reviews make me ever so happy!

Thank you: Merlinmyobsesion, Pompous Butterfly, Bailieboro and for reviewing the last chapter ^^

P.S. if I've missed anyone out, sorry! I get confused with my E-mails :S


	6. 21st June 1943

21st June 1943

Dear King Prat,

Sorry I haven't written in a while but…

You'll never guess what I've been up to; I'm a spy in Her Majesty's Secret Service!

I was on a mission in Germany (I had to dye my hair _blond_) so I couldn't write without being caught.

Bet you never thought I could be a spy, being so clumsy and all. But despite what you may call 'idiocy' MI6 recognize as being 'charmingly disarming'. Ha! You Clotpole, finally someone to realize my true talents!

But you know, even though I got a medal and people say I'm a hero, I don't like it.

I don't like lying and sneaking all the time. When I was in Germany I made friends there, did you know the 'enemy' is always just like us? They have family, friends, hopes, dreams and fears.

Always fears. They fear us as we fear them. Isn't that terrible?

They don't even realize I betrayed them. I betrayed their trust as I betrayed yours when I didn't tell you I was a warlock except this is worse because many of them will die because of me.

I don't like it Arthur. Please make this stop, all the lies and sneaking and deceiving and betrayal. I've been doing it for so long now, so long…

Oh Gods Arthur, sometimes I think I'm forgetting myself. Who am I?

Hans the German soldier?

Christopher the Shakespearean actor?

Charlie the one of many faceless soldiers of WWI?

Or Merlin? The secret warlock who failed his friends and allowed his closest companion to die because he was too afraid to tell him he had magic?

Please come back you Prat! Clotpole! Dollophead! I don't want to forget but it's so hard with all the lies I live with. All I do is weave covers for myself, to explain why I haven't aged, died or been stricken with illness.

Why do you leave me? I'm sorry I wasn't good enough before but I'll be honest now, no more lies I promise, I promise.

I'll be waiting Arthur, like always. I won't fail again; I'll always be waiting and ready for you.

Merlin

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A/N sorry it's been so long... for anyone reading any of my other stories I'll try to get the next chapters to you soon... but thank you for reading and if you can please leave a review, it's so disheartening to not have them.


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